The present technology relates to optical imaging systems, and more specifically, to a tuning process for a handheld scanner.
One of the most common imaging system configurations is a handheld scanner typically used for reading symbols, fonts or marks on packages or articles. It is important for imaging systems to achieve a quality scan so the image can be electronically searched, stored more compactly, displayed on-line, and used in a variety of machine related processes, including machine translation, text-to-speech, symbol verification and text mining applications.
With a handheld scanner, it can be necessary to tune the scanning device to ensure accurate and timely acquisition of presented target symbols. Current prior devices include multiple lighting options to ensure accurate acquisition of a presented target symbol. Other prior devices provided variable focus functionality to allow for better presented target symbol acquisition. Further devices allowed for both variable focus functionality and variable lighting functionality which could present a user with a complex set of parameters that must be user configured in order to effectively tune a handheld scanner.
When illumination is integrated into an imaging system, and more particularly a handheld scanner, the distribution of illumination on an object usually varies with the distance between the object and the vision sensor in the handheld scanner. Proper light distribution is especially important in applications such as reading dot-peen 2D codes with low-angle illumination or verification of direct part marking (DPM) codes, for example.
Furthermore, in handheld scanner applications, it can be difficult to keep the handheld scanner at a proper focal distance where the depth of field is very small, such as when a mark is very small or includes low contrast. As with any imaging device, providing quality results for each image scan can be difficult taking into consideration the numerous variables that affect the quality of an image scan.
With the introduction of variable lighting and focus parameters, the complexity of properly configuring a scanning device has increased significantly. Often, a user is forced to configure the scanner using an elaborate configuration interface. The configuration interface often requires the use of a personal computer (PC) and dedicated software to properly tune the scanning device.
Stationary scanning devices have overcome some of the above issues by incorporating an auto-tuning functionality. However, handheld scanners have presented a more difficult platform to provide with auto-tuning functionality. This is often due to the inconsistent orientation between the scanner and the target symbol due to the movement of the user holding the scanner.
Therefore, what is needed are systems and methods that can allow for a handheld scanner to have an auto-tuning functionality that can account for deficiencies in current handheld scanners.